Torn Down
TORN DOWN Episode Three, Season One, of Rise. Enjoy <3 Torn Down “You understand, right?” I press urgently. Nightshadow’s dark yellow eyes seem slightly uncertain. “You have a sister!” His eyes darkened unnaturally. “Bryce,” he warns, “that’s not even close to being the same.” “Why not?” I bite my lip, “My three sisters need me. They’re trapped under the embrace of death and I need to rescue them. I’ll bring them to the Coalition if that’s okay with Amberstar and Hawkstar.” “Being safe in the Twolegplace is not the same as being trapped in the Vipers’ poisonous trap,” Nightshadow says tightly, “you can’t leave yet, Bryce.” “Why?” I burst out, “I need to go save my sisters. I’m going no matter what you say.” The black tom shakes his head. “Then why are you even telling me this? In the middle of the night nevertheless.” He glances worriedly at Feathershine, who is still asleep in the den. “Bryce, you can’t risk it.” “I’m telling you this so you know where I’m going,” I tell him, “not so you can stop me.” Without waiting for his reply, I head for the camp entrance. “Bryce!” Nightshadow hisses after me, catching up easily with his longer legs. Curse my short, small figure. I push past the skinny tom and keep going, forging deeper into the forest. “Bryce,” Nightshadow pulls me aside. I’m ready to snap in his face but his yellow eyes are warm. “Be careful.” I hesitate. “I will.” I whisper. He nods and steps back. Giving him a small nod in return, I keep going. I can feel Nightshadow’s gaze on my back as I keep going. I hope Feathershine won’t be too devastated that I left. I’ll be back, I remind them silently, after I get my sisters and maybe Cloud and Sara. Surprisingly, I get through Viper territory without meeting anyone. I slip into the Twolegplace and try to pinpoint my location in the dark. It’s been five days since I left to go hunting in the forest. I hope the kits are alright. It takes awhile but I find the shack. I peek inside and breathe out a sigh of relief when I see all five cats curled up in their nests. The moment I enter, Sara stirs awake. “Bryce!” She exclaims, her pretty amber eyes lighting up. “Sara,” I purr, “I’m glad all of you are alright.” Jewel is awake in an instant, along with Ruby. Emerald takes a little longer and she looks skinnier than I remember. “Bryce!” They squeal. I embrace them all with another purr. Their scents are so refreshing. “We thought you left us,” Jewel says quietly. “I would never do that,” I gasp, “you know how much I love you three.” Emerald looks up with her emerald green eyes. “That’s what I'' told them. I just said you had some trouble getting back, that’s all.” “You can say that again,” I mutter. “What ''did you find in the forest?” Cloud asks, rubbing sleep out of his eyes, “You were gone for five days, Bryce.” “Thank you for taking care of them,” I turn to Cloud and Sara. They look exhausted. I silently berate myself for not trying to come back faster. “I found two sides of a war.” My sisters gasp in horror, “but one of those sides is friendly. They sheltered for me while I was trying to get back to the Twolegplace and we can go there for safety.” “Why?” Ruby whines, her amber eyes flaring up with anger, “I like it here!” “There’s prey there,” I insist. That’s makes all three of my sisters jump up instantly. Cloud and Sara hesitate. “Cloud? Sara?” Their hesitation makes me falter. “You guys aren’t going to stay are you? What if the other group finds you here and…tries to imprison you?” “Why would they do that?” Sara exclaims, her shock evident. I shake my head bitterly. “I don’t know their intentions but they could be targeting the Twolegplace cats next. Plus, the forest has plenty of prey for us to survive. I want to help the Coalition.” “The Coalition?” Cloud frowns, “You have a lot of explaining to do.” “First, we should get there as fast as we can. By daylight the Vipers will be on us.” I don’t want for them to ask who the Vipers are. I usher them out of the shack and hurry down the Twolegplace paths. Hopefully we could slip past the Vipers as easily as I did when I first came back. We don’t make it five steps before someone steps out. It’s a dark brown tabby with mean amber eyes. He eyes us in disdain. “Ah, Kraig told me about you.” He glares at me, “You escaped from his grasps and was spotted with those Coalition cats for the past five days.” I inhale sharply. They’ve been spying on me? His eyes take in the other cats. “Take them.” “No!” I fling myself at the head. I can’t let them take my sisters! Cloud and Sara stand over the five moon old kits and try to protect them as the Vipers lunge for them. He sneers and smacks me down. “Terran, take her.” The gray-white tom I had seen before hauls me up, his sky-blue eyes emotionless. I stare into them, trying to see the weird light that had come up when he had seen me. What happened to him? “Come on,” he murmurs. His voice is tender, contrary to his expression. When I continue to stare at him, he glances down and some emotion flits over his eyes before slipping back into blankness. A guise for the leader? He tugs on my scruff and I have no choice but to follow him. The pretty dark gray she-cat is handling my three sisters. Ruby is entangled in vines as she must have put up a fight. Jewel knows when to give up and Emerald probably didn’t have to the strength to continue the fight. “Where are Cloud and Sara?” I gasp suddenly, twisting in Terran’s grasp to try to find the kind couple. The gray-white tom grimaces momentarily and I follow his gaze. I gape as the Vipers dispose of their bodies. “No…” I whisper. Terran nudges me along and my paws stumble. He catches me and rights me up. “Come on,” he repeats, “there’s nothing you can do now.” Tears fill my eyes. “How could you?” I whisper harshly. “I--” “Be quiet,” Terran hisses just as the leader comes around. “Are you having trouble with her, Terran?” The dark brown tabby glares down at me. I glare back. “No, sir,” his expression is emotionless once more, “I have controlled fine.” Controlled? I seethe, As if. The leader – Nightshadow called him Korin? – sneers down at me. “Make sure you keep her quiet.” “Of course, sir.” We walk the rest of the way in silence. All I can think about is the way Cloud and Sara lay there in a heap, their eyes rolled over, and the light gone from their beautiful eyes. Terran doesn’t say a word as he leads me into a prison den. I don’t even pay attention to the way he wraps brambles around my paws before closing a bramble screen. When he’s gone, I sink to the floor, the brambles digging into my skin. But I ignore the pain. None of this will hurt more than losing Cloud and Sara. They were like my parents. The parents I never had. I don’t know how long it takes but when Terran opens the bramble screen once more, he slips inside and closes it behind me. “Hi,” he says hesitantly. I ignore him. “I brought prey for you.” I turn away and close my eyes. Prey. In a prison den. I’m going to be more well fed than I was in the Twolegplace. This idea would be hilarious if I wasn’t actually worried about my sisters’ health and safety. Terran shifts his paws. “You’re making me nervous. Usually prisoners lunge for the prey or maybe they’re lunging for me…” “I make you nervous?” I frown at him. His sky-blue eyes are so bright and warm that I flinch. He looks like Cloud. Terran blinks rapidly. “Is something wrong?” “Why should I tell you?” I ask bitterly. The gray-white tom actually thinks about this. “I guess you have the right not to. I just…you don’t seem like the typical rogue or even Coalition cat we catch.” “Wait you’re only capturing me because I worked with the Coalition for five days?” “Why should I tell you?” Terran smirks, copying my phrase from before. I scowl and he returns it. Stupid tom. I turn away once more but Terran nudges the mouse closer. “Hey, I didn’t mean to upset you. I just, Karina isn’t this fun.” “Fun?” I snort, “I’m your prisoner.” “I know,” he says patiently, “but to other Vipers fun means different things.” He bites his lip and seems slightly bitter about that.” “Is Karina your other prisoner or something?” “No,” he gives a little laugh to my surprise, “she’s my sister. You know the dark gray she-cat you saw me with the other day in the Dip?” I nod. Terran glances nervously at the screen before passing me the mouse. “I should go for now,” he apologizes, “I’ll…try to see if I can sneak back in any time soon.” I don’t even ask why he would do that. “Please try to keep my sisters safe,” I whisper. Terran pauses. “You mean the three we took in with you?” I give another nod and Terran looks worried for a second before replying, “I’ll try.” Then he’s out the entrance and closing the screen behind him once more. I lay my head on my paws and eat the mouse slowly. This was going to be a long day. ~ I wake and I’m surprised to find Terran dozing at the entrance of my den. Suddenly the screen door is yanked open and the dark gray she-cat Terran had called Karina glares down at him. She raises an eyebrow at me. “Ugh, you creep. Why are you watching my brother sleep?” “I just woke up,” I mutter. She jabs Terran with one paw. “Wake up. If Korin finds you here, you’re prey for the wolves.” Terran jerks awake. “Sorry,” he mumbles, “I was just waiting for her to wake up so I could talk to her again and I--” “You fell asleep.” Karina nods. “I can’t believe you.” Terran gives her a sheepish purr and I narrow my eyes at the dark gray she-cat. What’s with her? Even Terran wasn’t half as bad as she was. “You were waiting for me?” I frown. Terran looks embarrassed. “It’s quite lonely out there,” he ducks his head, “plus, you’re so different it’s reassuring.” Karina turns to me, her golden eyes sharp and precise. “The little ones say your name is Bryce. Are they right or are they lying to me?” I stand instantly, “What are you doing to my sisters?” I hiss. Her eyes flash. “Is your name Bryce?” She repeats. I hesitate. Karina isn’t sympathetic to my hesitation. “Terran, go get one of those kits and bring her here.” Terran doesn’t budge to my surprise. “Karina, this isn’t what we believe in.” Karina throws her head back and laughs. “Terran, brother, Korin isn’t someone to mess around with. If you want your stomach sliced open by that monster, be my guest. I’m sure Vicky would love to see you dead.” He flinches. He glances at me, “Just answer her questions and I don’t have to bring any of them over.” I hesitate still and Terran sighs before heading outside. Karina watches me carefully and I know she’s analyzing me. I turn away glumly and Terran comes back in, dragging Emerald with him. I gape at the scrawny she-cat. “You said you’d feed her!” Karina gives a loud groan. “You promised her that, Terran? Are you nuts? You have to be nuts.” “You promised!” I hiss at Terran, “I thought you were better--” “Hey,” Karina snaps, “you can talk to me like that but not Terran.” I blink in surprise but Karina pins Emerald down. The little gray kit gives a squeak of pain, scarlet blood visible. “Yes,” I dig my claws into the dirt, “my name is Bryce.” Karina gives me a dark smile, “That’s all that it took, dear. She hauls Emerald up and pushes her against Terran. “Take her back and please, try to follow directions.” Terran gives me an apologetic glance before scooting back out. Karina follows and I sink to the floor. How could I defend my sisters in a place like this? The End. Category:Fan Fictions Category:Cchen3's Fanfics Category:Rise